Three Lynx first half turnovers led to 14 Birmingham Southern points; as Birmingham Southern jumped out to a 34-3 halftime lead and held on to beat Rhodes 51-17 on the campus of Birmingham Southern, on Saturday, September 26th.
A Clay Adams fumble on the Lynx 29 yard line set up the first Panther touchdown. 6 plays later Birmingham Southern running back Walter Arrington scored from 7 yards out to make it 7-0 Panthers with 8:21 to play in the first quarter.
After a Rhodes three and out, Birmingham Southern marched 91 yards on only 6 plays as Arrington scored again from 30 yards out to make it 14-0 Panthers with 4:35 to play in the first quarter. The next time the Panthers touched the ball running back Shawn Morris went 79 yards on the first play of the drive for a touchdown and with 2:41 to play in the first quarter the Lynx found themselves behind 21-0.
Rhodes threatened early in the second quarter, however; sophomore quarterback Brett Stoots was intercepted at the goal line to thwart a scoring opportunity. After the Lynx defense held the Panthers, Rhodes got on the scoreboard with a Lucas Stockhausen 30 yard field goal to cut the lead to 21-3 with 7:39 remaining in the first half.
Birmingham Southern defensive back Trae Strain intercepted and returned a Stoots pass 58 yards for another Birmingham Southern touchdown with 21 seconds left in the first half, to give the Panthers an insurmountable 34-3 advantage at halftime.
Lynx sophomore quarterback Mike Burel led Rhodes to two 2nd half touchdown drives and finished the day 8 of 23 for 118 yards passing and rushed 13 times for 46 yards. Birmingham Southern running back Walter Arrington finished the day with 21 carries for 165 yards and 3 touchdowns. Sophomore defensive end Chris Bell led the Lynx defense with 12 tackles and a quarterback sack.
Rhodes falls to 2-2 overall and 0-2 in the SCAC. Next week the Lynx will travel to St. Louis, MO to play Washington University.
